I love this editorial from Asahi Shimbun. Written by Yoshibumi Wakamiya, this article heavily critize Japan's Self Defense Forces (SDF).
Based on the 1947 consitution, SDF is established to avoid any kind of war criminal actions that was once done by the Japanese Imperial Army. Japan is only allowed to build its military based on defensive purposes, so in other words the country is banned to possess any kind of offensive weapons.
SDF always remains a controversy in Japan, where the extreme right wing activists demand Japan to stop apologizing and star to build its military. Meanwhile, others remind Japan not to forget about the A-bomb which was a result of Japan's Asia-Pacific war campaign that already started even before the World War II.
A month ago, Air Self Defensive Forces Chairman Toshio Tomogami made the headlines of his writings that won an essay competition. In his essay, he wrote that Japan actions back in World War II was 'the right thing to do', and that Japan was 'not the aggressor.' Within several days, Prime Minister Taro Aso ordered his resignation. As predicted, his essays created a controversy storm and even China had some comments about this issue.
I love Asahi Shimbun's editorials. It's straightforward and brutally honest about what they are thinking. And this is one of it.
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Dear A:
It has been a long time since I heard from you. I hope this finds you well. Is your goal of becoming a senior officer of the Self-Defense Forces beginning to take shape? I decided to write to you because I thought you might have misgivings about recent developments regarding your organization.
I am referring to the controversy stirred by Toshio Tamogami, who was ousted as Air SDF chief of staff for writing an appalling essay for a prize contest.
Certainly, it is natural for SDF members to be puzzled when a top SDF officer makes remarks or behaves in a way that deviates from the principle of civilian control. At the same time, however, I heard that quite a few SDF members empathize with his plight. I find this development disturbing.
I hope you don't think The Asahi Shimbun is happy at the turn of events. On the contrary, I, along with my colleagues, feel as though I had cold water thrown in my face.
You might recall that The Asahi Shimbun ran an editorial a few years ago in which the newspaper took the drastic step of supporting legislation to deal with a possible military contingency. Our belief that Japan must stick to war-renouncing Article 9 of the Constitution remains unchanged. But in May 2007, we proposed the establishment of quasi-constitutional legislation that we tentatively called a "basic law on peace and security" to properly define the legality of the SDF. Both moves were made when I was a chairman of the Editorial Board.
It is true that the SDF, which has been in existence for more than a half century, faces many problems. However, we made the proposal because we thought that unlike the former Imperial Japanese forces, the SDF had taken root as an organization of a democratic society. We thought that what the SDF must protect is not the nationalistic state that Japan once was but the democratic nation that came into being. This is all the more reason that mutual trust between the SDF and the public is indispensable. Then like a bolt from the blue, Tamogami stirred things up with his controversial essay. Please try to imagine the magnitude of our shock.
Tamogami's essay is based on the notion that Japan was dragged into war, having fallen into a trap set by foreign leaders such as Kuomintang leader Chiang Kai-shek and U.S. President Franklin D. Roosevelt, and was thus a victim. Since many credible historians agree that the essay is full of factual errors and convenient assumptions, I will not bother to repeat them here. Please refer to what they are saying in this regard.
What I wish to address is Tamogami's statement to the effect that "Who can stake their lives to protect their country unless they can think of Japan is a good country?" Apparently, it struck a chord with some SDF members.
I can understand the logic that one must love one's country to protect it. Still, the argument that there is no way Japan could have made a mistake or it never resorted to aggressive behavior is childish beyond belief.
In this regard, Emperor Akihito took up the issue of patriotism during a June 2006 news conference.
He was referring to the period between 1930 and 1936 when leading figures were attacked one after another. Four active and former prime ministers were among those killed. It was around this time that party politics came to an end and freedom of speech was lost. Having pointed out those developments, the emperor said: "I believe that many of the Japanese people will bear in mind that there existed such a period prior to World War II, and that Japan will continue along a path on which such circumstances will never arise again."
The attacks on leading figures that the emperor mentioned include the so-called May 15 and Feb. 26 incidents of 1932 and 1936, respectively. The uprisings were launched by radical elements of the military. He no doubt made the comment to remind himself that the Japan-China War (Second Sino-Japanese War), which had its roots in the 1931 Manchurian (Mukden) Incident, and the Pacific War also occurred as an extension of such developments.
Without doubt the emperor loves Japan. We can sense his feelings of remorse all the more when we think that Japan is an irreplaceable and precious country for its inhabitants. Does Tamogami mean that such acts of terrorism and attempted coups d'etat were also traps set by foreign countries?
Asahi Shimbun's past mistakes
Actually, we are also suffering from acute feelings of remorse. The Asahi Shimbun, which criticized the May 15 Incident, cheered for Japan in the Manchurian Incident that occurred the previous year. This almost certainly encouraged the military to run amok. After the Tokyo head office was attacked in the Feb. 26 Incident, the newspaper shamelessly waved a banner of support for the government in the Marco Polo Bridge Incident in 1937 and Japan's following invasion of China as well as starting war against the United States.
After the war, our predecessors made a fresh start, having seriously reflected on their past mistakes. The Asahi Shimbun recently ran a series of articles titled "Shimbun to Senso" (newspapers and war) to examine its coverage of events at the time. The articles were published in book form. What was written by us in those days makes us cringe today. But we have no choice but to engrave in our minds these memories and accept them as a bitter lesson.
Just because we made mistakes in the past, it doesn't mean the role that newspapers played in the modernization of Japan should be denied. Nor does it make us lose pride in what we are doing today. On the contrary, the fact that we can scrutinize our past mistakes, albeit belatedly, gives us courage.
What Prime Minister Shigeru Yoshida (1878-1967) paid closest attention to when the SDF was inaugurated in 1954 was to sever ties with the old Imperial Japanese forces. I wonder if young people like you know that. Tomoo Maki (1891-1968), who served as the first president of the National Defense Academy of Japan, also wrote that he was asked by the prime minister to provide SDF education in a democratic setting.
It is true that our society today has a mountain of problems. We may come across many frustrating situations. Still, compared with times of war and oppression, there is no doubt that we live in a much better society. Tamogami expresses antipathy toward the statement Prime Minister Tomiichi Murayama made in 1995 on the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the end of World War II to express remorse and offer apology for this nation's past military aggression. However, I believe that a country that reflects on its past mistakes and apologizes for them with good grace is "a good country" that deserves to be protected.
Finally, I wish to tell you that our American friends are surprised at the controversy. They are appalled that of all people, a top leader of an SDF arm would try to justify the war that Japan entered hand in hand with Nazi Germany and call it a conspiracy orchestrated by Roosevelt. They are shocked that an ally it trusts so implicitly would allow a top official to make such utterances. If similar cases happen repeatedly, they could undermine Japan's relations with not only Asia but also with the United States.
Please do not allow yourself to be swayed by this controversy. I want you and your fellow SDF members to show your mettle and pride in a manner that is vastly different from the old Japanese military. This is my earnest wish.
Take good care of yourself. Let's get together soon and have a heart-to-heart talk.
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The author is an Asahi Shimbun columnist.(IHT/Asahi: December 10,2008)
That's a unforgettable date for the whole Japan nation as the general election took place. Liberal Democratic Party of Japan (LDP) that has ruled the government for more than 50 years, has lost to Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ). DPJ earned a landslide victory by winning more than 300 from 480 seats available in the Lower House. This is a historical moment in Japan since DPJ (finally), a party with less experience, has managed to topple LDP superior domination.
